The undergraduate archaeology student follows a curriculum structure
established by the department for all undergraduate majors. The
undergraduate concentration in archaeology is hierarchically structured
with a three staged sequence: introductory courses, intermediate
courses, and advanced courses. This structure is formalized through
required prerequisites and by consent of the instructor. Outlined
below is the basic temporal sequence for an undergraduate major
with a concentration in archaeology.
Lower Division Requirement:
ANTH 140 Introduction to Archaeology
ANTH 110 Introduction to Physical Anthropology
ANTH 120 Introduction to Cultural Anthropology
ANTH 170 Introduction to Linguistics
Recommended:
GEOL 120 Introduction to Geology
BIO 200 General Biology
PHIL 381 Philosophy of Science
BIO 312 Evolutionary Biology
BIO 350 General Ecology
MATH 108 Elementary Statistics
MATH 380 Probability and Statistics
Upper Division Requirement:
ANTH 313 World Prehistory
ANTH 347 Prehistoric Culture of North America
ANTH 349 Prehistory of California and the Southwestern United
States
ANTH 450 Archaeological Field Methods
ANTH 451 Laboratory Techniques in Archaeology
ANTH 455/555 Archaeology and Cultural Evolutionary Ecology
Required Core Courses:
ANTH 313 Peoples of the World: Prehistory
ANTH 314 Peoples of the World: Ethnography
Comparative Cultures 3 units
Biological Anthropology 3 units
Sociocultural Anthropology 3 units
Linguistics 3 units
Other Anthropology Courses 6 units
Senior Honors Program in Archaeology: 6 units
ANTH 499
Within this structure, however, there is flexibility to design
special tracks for students interested in archaeology as their
focus of concentration.
The Program Concentrations Offered
Special Concentrations in Archaeology for Undergraduates
In consultation with their archaeology advisor, undergraduate
students can elect to focus their course work on special electives,
and can utilize directed readings and independent research courses
and our Senior Honors program for a particular area of archaeological
concentration. The following is a short list of archaeological
concentrations that undergraduate students have pursued to date:
Climatic Change and Archaeology
Geophysics and Geoarchaeology
The Archaeology of the American Southwest
Computer and Quantitative Applications in Archaeology
The Archaeology of California
The Archaeology of the Great Basin
Prehistory of Ireland
Archaeology, Black Studies and Africa
Archaeology and the Mission Period in California
Senior Honors Program in Archaeology
The senior honors program in archaeology is designed to facilitate
independent research on a topic chosen by the student and pursued
in particular depth. Qualified undergraduate majors are invited
to participate in the honors program. Minimum qualifications are
junior standing, completion of at least 15 upper division units
in anthropology with a minimum grade point average of 3.4, and
the signature of the faculty sponsor with whom the student will
work.
Anthropology 499 is taken during the first semester of the senior
year; the student concentrates on focused readings and the collection
of materials and data for a senior thesis. In the second semester
of the senior year, Anthropology 499 is repeated and the student
writes the thesis under the direction of the sponsoring faculty
member. The senior honors thesis is retained permanently in the
department for students and faculty to read. Anthropology students
that complete the honors program with an "A" grade receive
special distinction in letters of recommendation from their advisors
for graduate schools and for employment opportunities. The thesis
has proven very beneficial to students applying to the top archaeology
programs offering the Ph.D.
Technical Skills Offered
Archaeological Field Research and Laboratory Methods (Site Mapping,
Computer Field Applications, Wood Preservation for Dendroclimatic
Studies, Computer Catalog Systems).
Remote Sensing, Ground Pentrating Radar, and Cesium Magnetometer
Methods in Archaeology.
Statistical and mathematical methods (Exploratory Data Analysis,
Dynamic Graphics, Data Analysis and Regression, Multivariate Methods,
and Sampling in Archaeology).
Computer programming and applications for mainframes, work stations,
and PCs (S, S+, AWK, C, Basic, Unix Operating Systems, SAS, SPSS,
SYSTAT, Minitab, Geographic Information Systems, SunTools, SunWindows,
DOS, MS-Word, MS-Windows, MS-Works, NutPlus).
Research Designs and Grant Writing (Method and Theory in Anthropological
Research, Statistical Techniques, Approaches in Research Designs
in Anthropology).
Dendroclimatic and Dendrohydrological Reconstructions (Statistical
Methods, Data Structure Analyses, Spatial and Temporal Analyses,
and Data Collection).
Curation and Preservation Techniques for Artifacts and Archives
for Museums (Computer Based Artifact Catalog and Museum Management
Files, Paper and Organic Materials Preservation, and Public Interpretive
Programs).